


Off Season Fling

by reeby10



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Photographer, Alternate Universe - Sports, Breaking Up & Making Up, Eating, F/F, Getting Together, Ginny Weasley plays field hockey, Kissing, POV Ginny Weasley, Pansy Parkinson does wardrobe and makeup, Secret Relationship, a lot of others show up but they're not that important, like honestly why do I have the eating so much?, not even the sexy kind of eating, only more like an open secret, there is no actual sports or photography going on just talking about it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-03
Updated: 2018-06-18
Packaged: 2019-05-17 13:11:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14832897
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reeby10/pseuds/reeby10
Summary: Ginny thinks the team calendar photoshoot is a stupid idea. That is until she meets Pansy, who is doing wardrobe and makeup for the shoot. They both know there's no way their relationship can last past the end of the photoshoot, but that doesn't stop them both from falling. Hard.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> My original recipient deleted their account, so I suppose now this is a gift for everyone involved in Fandom 5K 2018! I hope you enjoy it :)
> 
> I know absolutely nothing about London or women's field hockey, and very little about fashion and photography, so forgive the inaccuracies that surely exist. We'll call it artistic license lol
> 
>  **ETA:** Made some minor changes 4/27/19.

Ginny thought the idea for a team calendar was strange right from the beginning. They were a women’s field hockey team, so they didn’t exactly have the call for pictures and merch that the men’s teams had. It was ridiculous in her opinion, since she knew for a fact she played better than every single one of them, but that meant not a whole lot of people were begging for a team calendar. But she had a contract and was not in the habit of ditching her teammates, so she was in.

The photoshoot was being held in a tall, beautiful building in Chelsea. It was a far cry from where she’d grown up in East London, but she’d mostly gotten used to that by now since moving to Wales to joined the team five years before. She had a whole new life.

She arrived with the rest of the team and followed their coach, Angelina, through the expansive entrance hall, up a flight of marble stairs, and to a sweeping room that took up most of the second floor. One wall was floor to ceiling windows, giving a fantastic view of downtown London. The wall next to it was a mess of equipment and racks of clothing, while the wall opposite that had a white sheet trailing from the ceiling and down onto the floor. Ginny didn’t know much about photography, but she assumed that was where it would all happen. Hopefully it wouldn’t take long. She had some practice to get in before their tournament in three weeks.

“Ahh, the Holyhead Harriers, I presume,” a tall, pale man with long blond hair said, striding over to them from where he’d been checking some bit of equipment. He put out a hand. “Lucius Malfoy, owner and principal photographer for Dark Arts Photography Studio.”

Angelina introduced everyone on the team, each of them shaking Mr. Malfoy’s hand in turn. Ginny thought he was rather attractive, in a cold, aloof way. After introductions, he led them over to meet a few of his staff as well. His son, Draco, looked and acted very much like him, and was apparently in charge of lighting. Blaise, their secondary photographer, was no less aloof than those two, his dark skin and impossibly high cheekbones making him even more attractive than the two Malfoys.

But the one that really caught Ginny’s eye was Pansy, doing wardrobe and makeup for the shoot. Her dark hair was cut into a stylish bob, stark against her pale skin, and she eyed the group with what looked like the utmost boredom. Ginny had always liked the hard to get ones.

It turned out that this first meeting wouldn’t even get to any photography. Mr. Malfoy was thorough with all of his shoots apparently, and wanted everything planned out well beforehand. Ginny wasn’t sure why that meant she and the rest of the team had to be there, seeing as they were just there to have their pictures taken. They didn’t have any say, it was all up to Angelina and the team execs.

Except, it seemed, Mr. Malfoy was quite invested in them having a say about their photographs, and the calendar in general. What Ginny had thought would be the beginning of the photo shoot turned into a three hour meeting about what pictures would be used for what month, what the theme of the calendar would be, what kind of clothes they would wear, what they wanted the people who would buy the calendars to think, and more. Not nearly as simple as expected.

By the time Mr. Malfoy declared the meeting over, it was well past lunch time in Ginny’s opinion. Her stomach was growling, and she knew the rest of her teammates’ probably were too, so she wasn't so surprised when Angelina invited the studio staff to lunch with them at a bistro a few blocks down.

Giny kept her eye on Pansy as they walked the short distance to the restaurant. She kept to the back of the group with Draco, who she’d spent most of the meeting sitting next to, but Ginny was pretty sure the obviously close relationship there was platonic rather than anything romantic. Which was excellent news since Ginny was beginning to think the gorgeous and sharp witted Pansy was exactly her type.

To her delight, she ended up seated next to Pansy at lunch. There were enough of them in the group that they took up the entire back room of the restaurant, spread out over the long group table and a few of the individual tables. The Dark Arts employees were dispersed around among the team, though Ginny wasn’t sure whether it was by accident or by choice. Either way, she was happy for a chance to get close to Pansy.

“So, how do you like working for Mr. Malfoy?” she asked Pansy once orders had been taken and everyone had quieted down into scattered conversation.

“It’s the job I planned to do since I was a child, so I suppose I’m content,” Pansy replied. She smiled a little at Ginny’s raised eyebrow. “I’ve known Draco since we were in primary school. Helping his father with the studio was a given for us both, really. And you? Is field hockey what you’ve always wanted to do?”

“Absolutely,” Ginny answered immediately, with perhaps a little too much enthusiasm. She felt herself flush a little even as Pansy chuckled. “My brothers played growing up, but they would never let me play with them because I was a girl. So I decided I’d be better than all of them.”

Pansy nodded. “And are you?”

“I’m the only pro player in the family,” she said, feeling that familiar surge of pride. Her brothers had played well, but not well enough to keep up with her in the end. “So I guess so. It’s nice to rub it in their faces when I’m home for holidays.”

Their conversation quickly moved on to their families, Ginny’s huge, overwhelming but loving one, and Pansy’s smaller, more emotionally conservative one. Before she knew it, they were discussing their childhoods and how they’d always felt a little bit out of place despite having plenty of support for their life directions. It was quite a different picture of Pansy than Ginny had been painting in her head, but it somehow only made Ginny want to know more.

By the time their food came and they began to eat, Ginny knew she was in over her head. Pansy was still the prettiest, most elegant woman Ginny had seen outside of the pages of a magazine, but there was more than that. Pansy was smart and quietly funny and confident in a way that Ginny hadn’t even known she was attracted to.

She’d hoped for maybe a fling during the photoshoot, a night or two of fun before she returned her focus to the upcoming tournament. That still looked like a good possibility, even more so since she was pretty sure Pansy was as interested in her as she was in Pansy. The only problem was that now she wasn’t sure if a fling would be enough to sate her interest.

After all, she’d never really known how to do anything but go all in when she was interested in something. Or someone.


	2. Chapter 2

The next few days were a whirl of fittings and test shoots and secret makeouts in the dark corners of the studio. Ginny wasn’t sure she’d ever been happier, and her teammates had certainly noticed.

They teased her about it constantly, asking how she’d picked up a girlfriend so quickly, but none of them seemed to have realized that the girlfriend — though certainly neither of them had used the word yet, not when they knew there was a quickly approaching end date for their relationship — was right there in the studio with them. Ginny’s teammates thought it was some random girl from London, and she did nothing to dissuade them of the idea.

It made it easier to sneak out to coffee dates in the mornings before heading to the studio, or out for lunch at Pansy’s favorite French place when they took a lunch break. The lunches were Ginny’s favorite, pressed together in a small booth in the back of the restaurant, sharing a glass of wine and talking and exchanging quiet, furtive kisses. It was more than a little magical.

Back at the studio, they tried to keep their distance, tried to keep their relationship under wraps. It wasn’t something they’d discussed really, just something they both seemed to do automatically. Ginny wasn’t really sure why she wanted to keep this thing between them quiet. Maybe because this felt like the first real relationship she’d had in a long string of flings. Maybe because it had an end date that was all too fast approaching. That was something she tried not to think of too much.

Despite them keeping quiet, a few people seemed to know. Draco, from the way he looked at her sometimes, like he was sizing her up and still deciding if she was worth his best friend’s time. As much as she didn’t want to care what he thought, since she still thought he was far too aloof and self centered, she did. He was important to Pansy. And that was important to Ginny.

A week and a half after the first meeting, once shooting wrapped up for the day — they were onto April, with all of them in flowing floral sundresses, which was _really_ not Ginny’s usual style — Ginny stuck around as everyone packed up, helping Pansy put away all the day’s outfits. The day before, Pansy had hinted about them doing something different. Ginny thought, hoped really, that that might mean she’d finally get to see the inside of the other woman’s apartment.

“Takeout?” Pansy asked as they left the studio, their fingers brushing together with every step they took down the street. It made Ginny’s skin tingle pleasantly and she just wished she could twine their hands together for real. “I was thinking Indian.”

Ginny smiled. “Whatever you want, love.”

It took a few moments for her to realize exactly what she’d said. When she did, her steps stuttered, just a bit. Pansy hadn’t seemed to notice anything, so maybe it only seemed like a big deal for her. The thought made something sad and hopeless settle in the pit of her stomach, which she tried to ignore. They didn’t have much time together and she didn’t want to ruin it with those kinds of feelings.

The truth was, though, that she didn’t want to think about it because she was afraid of exactly what thinking about it might mean. If she thought about it, she’d have to admit how deep her feelings for Pansy went and how much the idea of their relationship ending gutted her.

And if she thought about that, she might think about exactly what might change if she didn’t go off to that tournament, less than two weeks away. That wasn’t an option she could think about. She’d worked so hard to get where she was, sacrificed so much to play the sport she loved so much. She couldn’t even think about giving that up for a girl. Because she just might do it.

“Are you alright?”

Ginny startled, turning to see Pansy looking at her, a quietly worried look on her face. She realized they’d stopped just outside an Indian restaurant. She’d been too caught up in her thoughts to notice. With an enormous effort, she wrenched herself back to the present, pushing all those thoughts back where they belonged.

“Um, yes, sorry,” Ginny replied quickly, trying to smile reassuringly. “Just thinking, you know. Shall we?”

Pansy continued to look at her a little strangely, but didn’t push the matter, which Ginny appreciated. They went into the restaurant and ordered, coming out a little while later with samosas and mango chutney and some really delicious smelling curry. Ginny heard her stomach growl, prompting a snort of laughter from Pansy, and they quickly made their way the few blocks over to Pansy’s flat.

“Welcome to my humble abode,” Pansy said, gesturing inside as she opened the door.

Ginny snorted as she walked in, because the flat was anything but humble. It was just as elegant as Pansy herself, decorated in a rich palette of green and black and silver. There was a comfortable looking leather couch flanked by two sturdy oak side tables in the living room, and Ginny could make out a modern chrome plated kitchen off to one side. She couldn’t see a bedroom, which was honestly the room she was most looking forward to seeing, but she thought it was probably through one of the closed doors on the other side of the flat.

It was a similar color palette and furniture style to that of the studio — probably because Pansy had had a hand in decorating it, as she’d told Ginny the week before — but somehow it was so much more homey and inviting here. Perhaps because the colors made it so, or perhaps it was just because Ginny knew it was where Pansy lived and that made it special.

“So?” Pansy asked.

Her voice sounded more raw and vulnerable than Ginny had ever heard it before, and she turned, setting the food on a nearby table and reaching up to take Pansy’s face in her hands to pull her into a kiss. Pansy melted into it, pressing forward until their bodies touched all the way down to their hips. Pansy’s hands settled on Ginny’s hips, ten points of pressure that kept Ginny grounded in the moment enough for her not to just drop down to her knees and eat Pansy out right there in the entryway.

She groaned, forcing that thought away to be dealt with later, and pulled away from the kiss. She took a half step back, creating some space between them. “I love it,” she said with conviction, smiling when the words made Pansy blush. “And not that I don’t want to continue this, because I absolutely do, but we have food.”

“Oh, alright,” Pansy said with a huff of laughter. She leaned in for one quick kiss to Ginny’s lips, then spun around and headed for the couch. “Let’s eat.”


	3. Chapter 3

After the first night at Pansy’s flat, Ginny started spending every night there. Her hotel roommate, Katie, probably wondered why she suddenly started not returning to the room at night, but thankfully she didn’t say anything. There were, however, plenty of winks and vague congratulations from both Katie and several others of Ginny’s teammates. She refused to admit that their quiet acknowledgement of her still secret relationship made her feel so smug.

It felt good to have Pansy, even as a secret, even for the limited amount of time they had. Sometimes it made her wish they could go on longer, but they knew that wasn’t going to happen. They both had lives they’d worked incredibly hard for, lives they couldn’t abandon even for each other. They’d only known each other a little while anyway. It would hurt when they went their separate ways, but surely it wouldn’t hurt forever.

At the studio, they continued to be friendly, but Ginny made sure not to treat her any differently than she did anyone else working on the shoot. It was a little awkward to act like that when all she wanted to do was pull Pansy close and kiss her to within an inch of her life — which she did whenever the two of them could sneak away together.

Draco continued to give her looks every once in awhile, judging ones, like he was trying to decide if she was good enough for his best friend. She tried to ignore those looks, because whatever was between her and Pansy was none of his business. She just hoped he didn’t try to give her a shovel talk, because that would really be too far. _Way_ too far.

“I don’t think Draco likes me,” Ginny said one day while she “helped” Pansy collect some things from storage. They’d actually been making out for a while already, so they probably needed to get back upstairs soon.

“He doesn’t like anyone,” Pansy replied distractedly, straightening her blouse from where it had been rucked up sometime earlier. “He barely likes me.”

Ginny snorted, because that was probably true, but shook her head. “He knows about us, right? Is that why he doesn’t like me?”

Pansy paused, eyebrows furrowing. When she looked up, there was something guarded in her eyes, something Ginny hadn’t seen there before. For a moment, Ginny’s breath caught in her throat and she was afraid of what answer she might get. Somehow, despite the flippancy of her original question, this felt much more real, much more important than she’d guessed.

“It’s not… that. Not exactly,” Pansy said stiltedly. She took a deep breath, turning away a little to look over Ginny’s shoulder instead of right at her. “He’s just afraid of what’s going to happen after the shoot’s over.” She laughed, a little hysterically. “He’s afraid you leaving is going to break my heart for good.”

That was exactly what Ginny hadn’t wanted to hear. “Is it?” she asked, voice quiet

Pansy shrugged and picked up the supplies they’d come down for in the first place. She headed for the door, looking the perfect picture of propriety. No one upstairs would be able to tell what happened, though some of Ginny’s teammates — and Draco too — might guess. Just as Pansy reached the doorway, she paused.

“It just might.”

***

They didn’t talk about it again, but Ginny knew the conversation was eating away at both of them. It was one of those things that had been silently decided between them at the beginning. Afterward wasn’t an option, it couldn’t be. This was just an off season fling. Nothing else to be said.

It made the rest of the photoshoot tense, gave their interactions an edge that hadn’t been there before. Ginny didn’t like it, and she didn’t think Pansy did either, but they both ignored it as best they could. They got through the days of fitting and photography with barely a word, and then went to Pansy’s flat at night with no words at all.

Those nights made it worth the tension, and Ginny knew she’d be thinking about them for a long time. Dreaming about them, probably, on the lonely nights. It made the upcoming tournament suddenly seem more dreadful than exciting.

But finally the last day of the photoshoot came. There were now pictures for each month of the calendar, and then some. They looked fantastic, so much better than Ginny had first thought they would when the calendar idea was brought up. The work, for both the studio and the team, the past few weeks had certainly been well worth it.

“How about a celebratory dinner?” Mr. Malfoy asked once the set had been straightened up and they were all back in their street clothes. “A thank you for such a pleasant experience.”

Angelina agreed for them all, and soon they were on their way to a restaurant a little ways away. It was nicer than the bistro they’d gone to on the first day, but Ginny expected nothing less of Mr. Malfoy. He was obviously someone who enjoyed showing off his wealth, but if that meant treating them to more expensive food than they’d usually get, she certainly wasn’t going to complain.

Ginny ended up seated next to Pansy at the restaurant, and she was fairly certain it was by design. Her teammates were putting on their most innocent looks, but Draco looked strangely smug. Not that he didn’t usually look smug, because he absolutely did. Probably got it from his father.

Pressed together in the dimly lit corner, it was easy to forget for a moment that this was the last time they’d see each other. No matter what Draco thought he was planning, or what Ginny’s teammates were expecting. Their flight to the tournament left at noon the next day and Pansy wouldn’t be there.

“...And she’ll have the stuffed shells with a side salad, and whatever beer you have on tap,” Pansy told the waitress, who nodded and left.

It took a moment for Ginny to realize that Pansy had just ordered for her, and with anyone else, that would have annoyed her to no end. She was her own person and she didn’t need anyone to do things for her. But Pansy had ordered exactly what she would have herself. They hadn’t known each other long, but somehow Pansy already knew her so well.

They talked as they waited for their food. Nothing too deep, and nothing about the future. Those things seemed to be off the table by mutual, quiet consent. It didn’t stop Ginny from wondering about it though. As Pansy told her about a designer she’d met at a conference the year before, Ginny thought about asking if she’d give up her job, come live with her on the road. The question never made it past her lips, though she could feel it echoing in her mind all night, wanting to be asked.

Sometimes she thought Pansy wanted to say something too, but she never did either. Would she ask Ginny to give up her team and live in London with her? She had to know that wasn’t an option any more than Pansy giving up her place at the studio was. They were both trapped by the lives they’d created, lives they were determined to live despite the seductive call of this weeks long romance.

At the end of the night, after desserts and coffee, it was time to say goodbye. Everyone streamed out onto the sidewalk outside the restaurant and exchanged hugs and handshakes. Ginny thanked everyone from the studio team, leaving Pansy for last. They looked at each other and Ginny could feel the question tugging at her mind again.

Instead, she said goodbye and hugged Pansy one last time and followed her teammates as they piled into a couple of waiting taxis and headed for their hotel. She very studiously didn’t look back as they pulled away from the curb and into the London night.


	4. Chapter 4

Ginny barely paid attention to anything during the flight to the tournament location. Her heart grew heavier with each passing kilometer, until she felt like it was enough to sink the plane entirely. All the rest of her teammates seemed to sense her melancholy and they avoided her, leaving her to her lonely thoughts.

She’d expected this, known it was coming, but that didn’t make it any easier. Hours out of London and she was already missing Pansy fiercely. That was just something she’d have to learn to deal with.

When practice started the next day, it was a relief because it gave her a distraction. She practiced fiercely, ignoring the looks Angelina and her teammates gave her. The dreamless sleep brought on by exhaustion was worth it to her, and it wasn’t like she hadn’t always been a driven, overly competitive player. This was just a little more of that than usual.

The morning of the first day of the tournament dawned far too early for Ginny. The team had been out late the night before, getting one last night of fun in before they focused entirely on the tournament which, if they played well, would go on for the next month at least. Angelina told them she didn’t doubt their ability to play well at all, just as long as they focused only on the game and nothing else.

Ginny felt a little called out, but she ignored the implication. It was over a week since they’d left London and she’d had plenty of time to bury her broken heart.

She was stumbling out of the shower, still feeling a little fuzzy from sleep, when someone knocked on the door. Parvati, her roommate, had gone out earlier to get breakfast. She must have forgotten her room card when she returned, so Ginny thought nothing of it as she made her way over and opened the door.

The words she’d planned to say to Parvati died on her lips as she froze, staring in shock at the person standing in the hallway. She felt numb, unable to process exactly what she was seeing for a long moment before she shook her head, trying to clear it.

“You’re… you’re here,” Ginny said, feeling a bit faint. There was no way this was real, no way Pansy was really there standing in front of her just like she’d been dreaming. “What are you doing here?”

Pansy shrugged, color blooming high on her pale cheeks to match the fashionable maroon coat she was wearing. It made her even more ethereally beautiful in Ginny’s opinion. “Draco convinced me I was making a mistake by letting you leave,” she replied, voice low. She took a breath, looking right in Ginny’s eyes. “I knew he was right.”

“But I thought Dark Arts was booked back to back for months, no way for you to get away,” Ginny said, because there was a reason they weren’t supposed to be together. A reason Pansy wasn’t supposed to be here now.

There was warmth building in the pit of her stomach, pushing the numbness of shock away. Pansy had come all this way just for her, just to be with her. They’d made no promises, said outright there would be no more between them because their live just weren’t compatible at the moment. And yet… here they both were.

All Ginny wanted to do was reach out and take Pansy into her arms, kiss her to make up for the terrible days they’d been apart. But that had to wait. They needed to talk and they needed to figure out what was going to happen now. Ginny had been resigned to her loneliness before, but she knew if they were going to be separated again, she wouldn’t be able to take it.

“So… what now?” she asked, trying not to show how nervous she was about the possible answer.

Pansy started to answer, then paused and smiled. “Could I come in and sit?” she asked, gesturing over to the overstuffed chair in the corner. “It took me awhile to find your room and I didn’t manage a bit of sleep on the flight.”

“Of, of course!”

They moved inside the room and Pansy took the chair, Ginny seating herself on the corner of her bed. It was the closest they’d been since that last night at the restaurant. She could practically feel the heat from Pansy just a foot or so away and it made her crave the intimacy of being even closer, like before. Hopefully they would have a chance for that again.

“I asked Lucius for a leave of absence from the studio,” Pansy said after a few moments, breaking the expectant silence that had grown up around them. “I’ll still be working, sort of. Researching and designing things. I figure I’ll see a lot of interesting fashion with everywhere you travel to to play.”

Ginny’s mouth opened in a little ‘o’ of surprise, and Pansy paused, flushing a little. If Ginny was getting the correct implications from what Pansy was saying, it meant that she was staying, was planning to travel with her wherever the team was headed. For a good while at least, which was far more than Ginny had ever hoped for.

“And he was fine with that?” Ginny asked. “I thought the studio couldn’t work without you, and even Draco didn’t seem likely to stand up to his father that much.”

Pansy giggle, a beautiful sound that Ginny realized she’d missed immensely. “No, he certainly wouldn’t. But we worked it out,” she said, still smiling. “Millicent, a friend from school, will be taking over my duties for now. Lucius was thinking of expanding anyway, so I talked him into letting me do a bit of scouting the possibility, if you will.”

“Of course you did,” Ginny replied, unable to keep an answering grin from her face. She was suddenly feeling so much lighter than she had for a week. “You’re quite persuasive.”

“I hope so.” Suddenly, Pansy leaned forward, stopping only when she was inches away from Ginny, her breath warm on her cheek. “Perhaps I can persuade you into a reunion kiss?”

Ginny needed no more prompting, and she leaned forward, letting their lips meet. Her whole body felt warm as she raised her hands to Pansy’s face, cradling it as she’d wanted to since the moment they last saw one another. They kissed fiercely, like they’d never get the chance to again. Thankfully this time they both knew that wasn’t true.

They broke apart sometime later, both smiling. Ginny could feel her cheeks aching from it already, but she wouldn’t pass up this happiness for anything. Having Pansy in her arms again really was just like a dream. Better, even.

Just as she was about to suggest they move onto something a little more acrobatic than kissing, Ginny’s eyes caught on the clock on the wall. It had been almost an hour since she got out of the shower, and she hadn’t even noticed. She leapt to her feet, a confused Pansy following behind a little slower.

“Our first match is in two hours,” Ginny called as she ran to the attached bathroom, looking for the uniform she’d hung in there the night before. “I’m so sorry we can’t continue this right now. I’ve got to get over to the stadium!”

Pansy laughed, seemingly unbothered by Ginny’s sudden panic. She picked up Ginny’s bag of gear, holding it out even as she pushed Ginny gently toward the door. “Don’t worry, I’ll be watching from the stands. I’ll still be here when you’ve won.”

Ginny leaned in for one last kiss, then grabbed her bag from Pansy’s hand and was out the door. She felt light as air now, energy thrumming through her body despite a bad night’s sleep, the tension of the past week completely gone. Pansy waiting for her after the game was more than enough motivation to play her hardest out there. They had a future set out together now.

What better way to start it than with a win?


End file.
